PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE: This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus use an image from my favorite sport, golf. Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as a Congressional press secretary in Washington, D.C., an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and a private sector lobbyist. This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.

I often do some of my best thinking while returning from the golf course.

Yesterday, three questions crossed my mind:

• Does Donald Trump ever get embarrassed by what he said, such as the “shithole” comment in relation to Haiti, El Salvador and Africa?
• Does Donald Trump ever regret anything he says – such as the statement above or previous ones criticizing the Mexican judge, questioning Senator John McCain’s patriotism, or taking on the couple who had lost a son in war?
• Will Donald Trump ever issue an apology for something over-the-top which has crossed his lips?

I imagine the answer to all of these questions is no.

Trump appears to have no funnel through which he decides what to say. He often appears to say the first thing that comes to his mind, usually after watching Fox News.

If what he says one moment contradicts what he said before, no problem.

Before Trump was elected, he got into a set-to with reporter Megyn Kelly who magnified her disagreement with Trump into a major role for NBC news. Here’s what Jenna Johnson from the Washington Post wrote then and it is still true today:

“If there’s one thing that Trump does not do, it’s apologize — for anything, even comments or tweets he later admits were not in the best taste. That’s a list that seems to include two re-tweets from August that called Kelly a ‘bimbo’ and this tweet from January: ‘I refuse to call Megyn Kelly a bimbo, because that would not be politically correct. Instead, I will only call her a lightweight reporter!’”

Yeah, right.

So, does Trump have a conscience?

I obviously don’t know, but, again, it would appear not.

If the issue was only the lack of decorum in the Oval Office, that would be one thing. But it is deeper than that.

Trump comes across as racist. He is an egotist. He believes “it’s always about me” and that he is always right…others be damned. He wants everyone know that he has his finger on nuclear button and it is bigger than anyone else’s.

We need someone better in the White House!